Do What You Love, And Do It Often {Holstee Manifesto}

You see, during the biggest recession of our lives, Mike and Dave quit their full-time day jobs to pursue their passion for a sustainable lifestyle through innovation and design. *Effing awesome.

The gem they created:The skinny:

WHO: You and me, like minded creative people in pursuit of love and life who need to be reminded to slow down.WHAT: To ponder your purpose of being {flowerchild thoughts welcome}WHEN: Take 5 minutes for yourself. Right now. Seriously.WHERE: In front of your iPad, iPhone, laptop, parking lot, or gardenWHY: Life is shorter than we think.

**** IMPORTANT: One lucky commenter will receive a gift from me worth more than the $25 iTunes gift card that I’ll also be emailing them Monday, August 8, 2011 by 10am MT.

Notable lines (with personal notes):+ If you don’t have enough time, stop watching TV. I’ve never paid for cable TV and am proud of it! Yet I love movies on my 60” 3D HD.+ Travel often; getting lost will help you find yourself. True that. Among the youngest cartographers at National Geographic, I play off the fact that I get lost all the time. I call it exploring. Kinda like my experience at Burning Man 2010. Or in Beirut last month.+ If you don’t like your job, quit. No comment about my day job until midnight Sept 30.

Beloved Blog Readers: Right now, I want to hear your notable lines (with personal notes), commented below. There is a gift MUCH greater than the $25 iTunes gift card that will be included in your *free* gift. You dictate. Spread the love.

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Posted by R. J. on August 4, 2011

18 Responses to “Do What You Love, And Do It Often {Holstee Manifesto}”

Life needs to be lived. I’ve been letting it passing me by due to some chronic illnesses. But I’ve decided to not let that stop me reaching the goals I made before all this happened.

That 300 year old house in Tuscany is still there for me! I just plan on making the adventure unforgettable! When I get there! You are all invited to a bar-b-que overlooking some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world!

“I began to realize how important it was to be an enthusiast in life… If you are interested in something, no matter what it is, go at it at full speed ahead! Embrace it with both arms, hug it, love it and above all become passionate about it. Lukewarm is no good. Hot is no good either. White hot and passionate is the only thing to be!”
~Roald Dahl (1916-1990), British novelist

Of course, I’d have to say that photography is not my biggest passion in life. I think my biggest passion would have to be my relationship with the Lord. I never want to be “lukewarm” in that. Sometimes I do get that way tho :(. Then I’m reminded what a great blessing it is to me when I’m not and when I’m pursuing Him more. 🙂 anyways that’s me at midnight.

“This is your life. Do what you love and do it often. If you don’t like something, change it.” After college I was not satisfied with just selling art and I wanted to create it. This desire to follow my passion caused me to go against my very character and embark on a cross country quest to begin a new career. And it’s been a very fulfilling adventure!

I suppose that sometimes people get so focused on what’s not right in the world, that they forget to embrace what is right. It’s the little things in life… like doing my own pedicure, reaching my distance goal in running, finishing a big project at work, or a good hair day. These things are so simple, but they make me happy. So, I agree, if you’re not happy, change your situation. If you want to travel, make it happen. If you want something, go after it. Life is too short for dislike, distaste, or disinterest. Love often and love with your whole heart. 🙂

I broke that into two parts as it’s something Alyssa and I have really been talking about lately. Live YOUR dream. I think so often I get caught up in living the “American” dream with the house, picket fence, 2.5 kids who are all above average, and spending my entire life just making sure I have a retirement plant good enough to sustain us. But what about MY Dream? What about my Wife’s Dream? What about Our dream? It’s quite different in many ways from the “American” dream, with some similarities. Why don’t we focus on that?

Wear Your Passion: Why hide our passion for life, love, and hobby? It should be like a great coat, supportive, cozy, and always gives you a warm fuzzy feeling. If people you interact with daily cannot tell what you are passionate about, maybe we need to work on our passion again.

take calculated risks and jump! quitting our jobs and moving west was the scariest and most rewarding thing we’ve ever done. we’ve been to incredible places and met amazing people. can’t believe it’s almost been a year…

As for quitting your job if you don’t like it, that’s what I did 1.5 years ago and I haven’t looked back. Now I’m about to go back to a ‘real job’ but being nomadic has been awesome. Along the AT no one I met ever said they regretted leaving whatever they were doing to take a hike for themselves. Sure, perhaps they missed some life conveniences and family but doing what you love and making as goal is something too many people push to the back of their mind in favor of keeping up appearances or the idea of it being impossible.

I keep coming back to this quote by Howard Thurman: “Do not ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive. The world needs more people who have come alive.”

There are so many things that I think I “should” be doing but this quote reminds me that the only thing I should do is what makes my heart sing. Period. Hence why I am a mother first and foremost even though this is not the “cool” thing to do. And why I’m pursuing photography instead of something that my degree applies to. My education tells me i “should” do something “serious” instead.

Travel often. Getting lost will help you find yourself
Being vulnerable is not always a bad thing, it makes your stronger. During a recent visit to Iceland and Spain, I got lost a few times. On purpose. I made new friends, saw places that I would’ve missed on a tour and proved that I’m a lot more independent than I thought (or not)!

When you eat, appreciate every last bite
… whether it’s rotten shark, fried crickets, durian or even broccoli (I’ve tried them all, plus more)! Always be open to tasting everything at least once. My mom starved her way through the Khmer Rouge, so even if it’s not food to you, it’s food to someone else. Hey, it might even taste good!

But my all time favorite:
Nobody ever said life would be easy, they just said it would be worth it.

WOW! This really was inspiring. I’m definitely in a rut. Last week my friend sent me your link and I was so inspired that I submitted a vacation request at work for 7 work days off and I booked a flight to Alaska. I am flying to Anchorage this week and staying for 10 days. Talk about drop everything and fly by the seat of your pants. I basically booked a car and lodging in each of the cities I am driving to. Once in these towns, I will take full advantage of nature. I’ll hike, enjoy the beauty, and hopefully clear my clouded head! Thanks for the precious reminder that “life is short” and we need to “travel often”. I hope to have and amazing story to add to my chapter of life from this trip. Bon voyage!

I love the line about TV… so many people say they don’t have time yet they can quote several different television shows! I’m behind on my blog reading, so I didn’t make it into the contest, but I love the manifesto!